Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai accepted the impeachment of two key ministers by the Afghan Parliament but said the two officials should retain their posts until suitable replacements are found.
Defense Minister General Rahim Wardak and Interior Minister General Bismillah Mohammadi will “continue as experienced and dedicated persons to serve their nation and their country in other capacities within the government,” Karzai said, according to TOLO news, a news website that solely reports on Afghanistan.
Lawmakers dismissed the two officials Saturday for failing to prevent border attacks from Pakistan and blamed them for failing to prevent assassinations of top Afghan officials.
Karzai, who said the two deserve the “highest state medals of honor,” accepted the parliament’s decision to remove them.
Wardak has been the country’s defense minister since 2004 and Bismillah served as the chief of army staff until 2010 before he was appointed interior minister.
Afghanistan’s spy chief, Rahmatullah Nabil, said last week that the Pakistani military had fired more than 2,100 rockets in the past four months in several provinces in Afghanistan, including Nuristan and Kunar, both located on the border with Pakistan, reported The Express Tribune.
Wardak, before a vote was handed down to remove him, said there were reinforcements deployed to the border areas while Afghanistan “also sent long-range artillery and ammunition for use by all army corps.”
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